


Reversal

by m3la



Category: Death Note
Genre: Alternate Ending, Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Shinigami, Time Travel Fix-It, What-If, Yotsuba Arc
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-17
Updated: 2016-05-10
Packaged: 2018-05-27 04:33:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6269833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/m3la/pseuds/m3la
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>'If I had just one more chance, would I go through it all again?'</p><p>Sometimes, your answer might be <i>fuck no.</i> Thanks to the efforts of some bored Shinigami, however, it turns out that L doesn't get a choice in the matter.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue: Light Yagami Should Have Won

**Author's Note:**

> Summary: the Shinigami, who are now the DN fandom, MST3K a Lawlight fanfic. Anime canon but with the manga ending being the one referenced, since I prefer it.
> 
> As far as I can remember there are a lot of fics where Light gets sent back in time or re-traces canon in some way (and they're always unfinished... and I cry every time because it's my favourite trope ;n; ) but I've never found one where it's done with L instead. So, I started this! ;u; (it was going to be a long oneshot but I decided to break it up so I could post it earlier)  
> 'Spiting the Nail' is going to be a collection of 'what-if' type AU fics, specifically alternate canon events kinda deal, starting with this one. No plan, though... they'll happen when they happen. .A.

 

_"You're nothing but a crazy murderer."_

_Kira was, at last, defeated._

_No longer a controlled, untouchable picture of cool logic and harsh ethics, but in death reduced to nothing more than a frothing, rabid animal, screaming helplessly in fear of the unknown._

_The damning second struck and his movements stopped. Lying disgracefully in a pool of his own blood, all alone._

_Not at all unusual for a human in the end._

_Yes, the end – that time had finally come. This story had come to a close._

_With the name written down on the page, Ryuk gave one last rusty cackle before flying away from that hallowed place and into the sky beyond._

...

...

...

...

...

...

...

"Man, what the hell was that?"

"Is that seriously the ending? Can you say 'anticlimax'?"

"That little albino gremlin pulled that crap out of his ass! How could Kira be that unprepared?"

"I can't believe those two newbies got that far! The kid was a wannabe and that other guy with the weird thing for leather died as soon as he actually did something!"

"What a bleeding cop-out."

The crowd of Shinigami huddled around the portal to the human world bickered and complained amongst themselves, altogether extremely displeased with the outcome they'd witnessed.

There was a swishing sound, the beating of feathery wings, and their chatter dispersed as the various death gods gathered craned their bony necks around furiously to accuse the source of it. One of them called out.

"Oi! Ryuk! **Ryuk!"**

Ryuk turned at the call of his name as he dropped down and landed, shaking off the disorientation. Flying back from the human world always gave him terrible jetlag. "What the hell do you want, Nix?"

All the gathered Shinigami started hurling complaints.

"You told us this was gonna be good!" Nix growled.

"Well, it was for a while, I guess," a gravelly voice in the back mumbled.

"Not my fault all you folks get bored so easily," Ryuk replied, scratching his head. "Why don't you just find your own human to mess with?"

The crowd bristled.

"Oi, that's no excuse! We were all watching, you know!"

"I wanted Kira to win!"

"Woulda been cool, but that's just not how it happened," Ryuk grumbled.

Another Shinigami who'd just happened to be flying by and listening in scoffed in their direction. "What, you guys seriously went and stayed? I stopped watching after that freaky guy who challenged Kira in the beginning died. He was my favourite human."

The crowd perked up at once at this, instantly seeming more excited.

"Mine too!" Someone called out. "I was actually kinda disappointed to see a human die!"

"I agree! He was pretty interesting, for a human," another Shinigami added, and everyone else nodded.

Ryuk rolled his eyes at them. "You mean L?"

The crowd of Shinigami burst into noise. "Yeah! Him!"

"I wanted him to challenge Kira till the end..." someone complained.

Ryuk scoffed, laughing and sitting down. "Well, he's dead. Too bad. You guys are honestly reminding me of Rem."

Momentary silence.

Distasteful muttering.

"Who?"

"Oh, she was annoying."

"Don't you remember? She was the one who killed that L guy. Who knew you could actually die that way?"

"Yeah," Ryuk cut in, "And he's not coming back, no matter how much you guys –"

"So sure about that?"

Someone they had not noticed before was standing there now, surveying the gathered crowd. There was silence at once as everyone gazed upon the intruder – a short, stubby-winged Shinigami with three beastly heads, all beaming with mischievous glee. His name was Ximera and no-one really liked him much. "Call me sentimental, but I was rooting for that human too, you know. Everyone here's going to be pretty bored for a while if your show suddenly goes away _, Ryuk._ I reckon it should get a re-run."

Ryuk scratched at his head, confused. "What are you talking about? If I drop another Note, the humans are going to know it's Kira instantly. And it's clear none of you want to watch that kid who succeeded L."

"I liked him," someone whined.

"Shut up, Sidoh, no one asked you."

"Oh."

Ximera rubbed his four hands together with a high-pitched cackle. "What I mean is that we're going to make things go… _differently_ this time. Let's just say I beat the old man in cards a few times and he owes me a favour."

"Seriously?" Ryuk gawked at the other Shinigami in disbelief. "You're going to try and return a human soul from Mu? And won't it have unforeseen consequences if you go and mess up time in the human world like that?"

Ximera clicked all three tongues at once, rolling his eyes. "Eh, it'll be fine, who cares. I don't pay you to complain."

Ryuk slouched. "You don't pay me."

"Exactly. Wait, what was I saying again? Oh well, let's mess with some human souls."


	2. I

_I… wasn't wrong! But I…_

_…_

_…_

_…_

_…_

_…_

_…_

_…Wish it didn't have to end like this._

* * *

 

**[ I ]**

 

Cold.

Something was cold – somewhere. Cold – no, _he_ was cold. The sensation was wrapped around his wrist, like an anchor weighing down and pulling him back to reality with a blinding force; this feeling wasn't ebbing away, but growing stronger with every passing moment. Everything was dark, but that coldness, that anchor was what remained, steadily focusing, steadily clearing out.

Wrist. Hand. Fingers – slowly folding them and finding a curved, smooth edge, spreading the cold feeling along fingertips – _his_ fingertips, his fingers, _his -_

 _Heartbeat._ Steady.

Breathing, in and out, no constriction, no tightness.

Eyes. Closed.

L Lawliet opened them and the darkness was gone.

His body jerked all at once, rushing with disorientation -- and he flipped spectacularly from the couch he'd somehow been sleeping upside-down on, head hitting something thankfully-soft with a _thud_ as he landed in a backward roll with his ass in the air.

There was a faint _clink_ and L's eyes widened as he spotted the all-too-familiar metal cuff attached to his right wrist. His head started to throb as sudden thoughts swarmed it, as blood swirled round and returned to it.

_Why am I… Where is… I thought…_

The world was clear again at last and he gasped for air like he'd just surfaced after drowning, shivering in a cold sweat. Realising only after a few seconds that his body was frozen completely still he forced himself up, moving anything and everything he could.

_…Handcuffs. Yotsuba. Bedroom. Oh God, **no -**_

No time to think any further, because as it turned out, he'd fallen right off the chair he normally slept in next to the bed and had, in fact, landed… well, _on_ it.

L's breath caught as he froze up again, as his heart very nearly came to a stop in his chest again. His frantic gaze remained fixed in place, lingering dangerously on the trail of the silver chain, not daring to follow it.

_Oh God, no._

The creases in the bed covers were enough to hint at the presence, the weight of the body underneath them. And it was cruel irony that he could feel that heart of his hammering harder than it ever had in his life, breaths still coming rapidly.

All he had to thank in this moment was the fact that somehow, by some amazing stroke of luck, one of the last people in the world L Lawliet wanted to see right now was still fast asleep.

No, scratch that – _the_ last. Had the bastard gone and crawled his way back out of Hell, L would honestly sooner have given Beyond Birthday a friendly hug and a pat on the back than come face-to-face with _him_ again.

The boy who was and would be Kira.

But who… wasn't.

_No, not at the moment._

L quickly pushed away all thoughts of the boy laying with such deceptive peacefulness right beside him and forced his eyes to the wall, mind quickly whirring into action again. Breaths gradually slowing. He wasn't going to look. Not yet – the chance of throwing up if he did was definitely over seventy percent.

So L returned to his chair, snatching up his laptop off the nearby desk and checked the current date and time. The glow of the computer screen on his face felt somehow nostalgic, and his fingers began to shake uncontrollably. It took a few moments just to be able to sit steadily; partly the nausea, partly the sight of the bed just out of eyeshot.

Palms becoming clammy, L tried to control his breathing as he twitched impatiently for the system to start up – when the screensaver appeared at last, his eyes instantly darted to the upper right corner, telling him the date was October 24 and the current time was 11:46 P.M.

Almost three days before the date of his greatest mistake.

That was, at least… if all that had, in fact, _happened_. If… Shinigami were real, if Kira killed via magical notebook, if on November 5, eleven days from now, L would suddenly fall off his chair and his heart would stop beating –

He didn't know what to think. It was unreasonable to imagine that he had, somehow, gone back in time or, even stranger, ended up in a parallel reality. That everything past this point he knew could be anything other than a dream. But if something like Shinigami could really exist – without which no other way of explaining the Kira case thus far could be found – then was it really so implausible after all? Why should he doubt his own memories? L was about to think further on the matter before he caught something out of the corner of his eye.

Something that hadn't been there before, that had _never_ been there before, lying there innocuously on the carpet like a blot of ink in his vision. Something that filled him with a deep and paralyzing sense of dread.

It was a large, black feather, far bigger than that of the average bird.

L put his laptop down and crouched in front of it, analyzing it closely. Somehow just looking at it was enough to make his stomach… _twist,_ not making that already-present nausea any better. A panic struck him and he whipped his head round, searching the room.

He had suddenly felt as if someone was laughing at him behind his back – no, a whole _crowd_ of someones, and became uneasy as he attempted to shake the feeling away. It was irrational, after all. He was alone in here – well, alone aside from…

Aside from…

L took a deep breath. He glanced at the chain leading from his wrist onto the bed, and slowly stood up. He took a small step closer. Then another. Then another.

And finally looked.

The chain meeting its opposite end round a thin wrist, fingers relaxed and gently curled. _He caught me. He held me. He wrote all those names._

Auburn hair splayed out across the white pillow. _Messy. He hated being seen like this._

Lips parted, mouth slack in sleep. _No smirks. No lies._

The beginnings of bags, of marks of stress underneath the eyes. _He overworked himself. Just like me._

 _…Light._ There was nothing left to do but say it. To face it.

Just what was it L had missed? Surely it had to have been there - a hint of his true nature that escaped his watchful gaze every time? L was suddenly furious with himself, furious that he could have missed it. _How_ could he have missed it?

L crawled onto the bed, inch by inch, and leaned over the sleeping form in front of him.

There was nothing there but a sleeping face, nothing but the picture of innocence. But this wasn't enough. This answer wasn't satisfying, and so –

Closer, closer. Light's face was covered by L's shadow. Closer, _closer,_ until he could finally see what he was looking for. Where was it? _Where?_ What was he even trying to find? What would Kira look like? What would give him _away?_ Kira wasn't there, he wasn't going to return, no, not until _that_ day, much later on; not until that **_scream,_** but it had to be somewhere. It had to. It _had_ to…

Their noses brushed and L stopped, only just realising how far he'd gone. He could feel slow breaths that were not his own against his face. And still, there was nothing.

Those closed eyes were now wide open.

Light jumped wildly, bumping their foreheads accidentally in the process, crying out and backing away as fast as possible. L was startled too, backing off just as quick. He didn't want to deal with this right now. He _couldn't_ deal with this right now. But he'd have to.

Light blinked once or twice, as if trying to decide whether what had just happened had just been some kind of weird hallucination. "What the hell…?" he mumbled sleepily, disturbed.

 _Those eyes. Those_ _**eyes.** _ _They're not… God, I almost forgot what they looked like, but they're not – they're not like -_

L, for his part, said nothing, remaining still. Frozen to the spot, more like it – unable to think of what to do in this situation. Those eyes above him, that smirk, it was all coming back and playing on repeat…

"You're trying to find out if I'm Kira like this? By watching me _sleep?!_ Or was Misa right after all?"

L couldn't call himself back to reality. His heart was pounding again. His throat dried up and any attempt at speaking stopped before it could start.

"…Ryuuzaki?"

His vision was flashing with red, the red of the screens displaying their emergency message – it was like he was there again, everyone's panicked voices playing on repeat, and he could almost feel the teaspoon slipping again from his grasp –

Light was staring. L felt like his heart was ready to stop again.

Light's hand was on his shoulder. The back of his neck became as cold as ice.

"Ryuuzaki…"

Why was this happening? Was L truly back? He couldn't think – but his body was protesting, panicking, and told him one thing was for certain. He couldn't face Light; not right now. He needed to think somewhere, and he needed to think alone. But – L stared wide-eyed at the chain connecting them as if leashed to a rabid animal about to eat him, one breath away from trying to gnaw his own arm off just to make an escape. If there was meant to be sound coming out of Light's mouth right now as it moved, he couldn't tell; his head was buzzing and he was panicking and all he could hear was his own instincts screaming at him to get away.

Things would just have to be improvised for now.

Pulling the key from his pocket, L unlocked his cuff with a _click_ and scrambled off the bed, hastily connecting it to one of the bedposts with the remaining scraps of his sanity.

"You're taking them off? What…?" Light sounded confused. Well, that was fair, seeing as L never planned on doing this in a million years, but he'd never expected on this happening in a million years, and oh God, he just needed to get away, _now -_

"Ryuuzaki! Wait –"

The cuff was fastened securely and L hurried towards the door without even glancing behind him.

"Go back to sleep. I'll be back."

"What happened? What are you doing?!"

L left the room and shut the door behind him, the wild jangling of the chain against the headboard fading as he rushed towards the lift at the end of the hallway.

* * *

"Oh, this was my favourite part of the story," a Shinigami croaked thoughtfully, craning his head to peer in closer to the portal. "That human turned completely different, and then they became human friends. It was sickening."

"What? This bit was so _boring_. I don't understand how anybody enjoyed it."

Ryuk scratched at his head, amused at the reactions of the other Shinigami. He was already getting somewhat nostalgic - and wondering if it would be against the rules to pop in for a little while and ask Light for an apple. It had sure been hard trying to live without those.

Ximera, sitting near the back of the gathered group, was chittering nonsensically and giggling with glee. That little bastard was certainly enjoying himself.

"You know," Ryuk prodded him, "I think you really went and freaked the guy out. He's never been like this. It's kinda funny to watch, actually."

"Yeah, it's hilarious!" Another Shinigami crowed, bursting with laughter. "Like that one time he flipped his lid over hearing about us."

Sidoh murmured to himself. "Actually, I felt a little insulted..."

Midora made a gross slurping noise, pushing further into the crowd to get a better view. "Hey, are they showering again? I liked watching the showers. Do you think they'll do more of those?"

"Those were fascinating," murmured Gukku. "Humans express their friendship in many different ways."

But Nix groaned out loud at this, wings twitching in irritation. "I don't understand how the human just _changed_ like that. It was very out-of-character, and all-around honestly some cheap writing."

Ryuk blinked. "Uh, nobody's scripting it, Nix."

"Well, I'm just saying. He should have still been evil and stuff, clearly. Humans are so contradictory."

" _Ugh,"_ an unfamiliar voice cut in, "you just don't get the subtext."

All the Shinigami gathered jumped. "W-When the hell did _you_ get here, Nu?"

Every Shinigami worth their Death Note was completely and utterly terrified of her, and for good reason.

The writhing mass of eyeballs simply blinked at them. "What?" Nu replied calmly. "Can't... _eye_ enjoy watching the humans too?"

Everyone groaned loudly. This was going to be a long sitting.


	3. II

**[ II ]  
**

The night sky was still dark and murky, brightened by the light pollution from the city surrounding the building below. It was cold walking around on the roof with nothing but a thin shirt, but it was also hard to care when there were far more distracting things to worry about, such as the seeming inevitability of your suspect _slash_ friend _slash_ fake friend _slash_ co-worker killing you, laughing in your dying moments, and probably humping your grave triumphantly afterwards.

Wait, where had that come from?

...Probably best not to question it.

L stood and bristled, still unable to shake the feeling of invisible laughter off of his back. Could this be a joke? A simulation of real events by the Shinigami themselves? Of course, it wasn't implausible that immortal(?) beings of death could find a way to manipulate life as well, but why would they want to bring back a human? More importantly, why would they want to bring back the opposition to Kira? Nothing made any sense, and until something did, there was no reason to act. No hasty decisions. He'd already made one poor decision too many.

L realised he could convict Kira himself this time.

If this was real. _If,_ an increasingly-likely if, but an if all the same.

It would only be a matter of placing cameras in the helicopter and finding how exactly the bastard had managed to write Higuchi's name. Assuming his opponent had no recollection of former – or later - events, it really would be as simple as that.

But…

Soft pinpricks were landing at his feet. It was beginning to drizzle. L found it hard not to smile; the rain had always relaxed him. He closed his eyes and tried to focus on nothing but each drop as it hit his skin. His head already hurt from all this confusion. If the rain had been the last thing he had known before the end last time, then to be bathed again in it felt something like a rebirth; at the very least a pleasant and refreshing sensation. L could almost feel his thoughts beginning to clear up -

…But.

He could only remember now how it had all been a mistake. He'd never been willing to give up his pride, neither of them had, and that was why, in the end, he'd chosen Kira.

And that pride had done nothing but lead L to his death.

At first, following that strange change of character during Light Yagami's confinement, he had been wary. To see such sudden… innocence. At times the boy's acting had been good enough to appear almost genuine, but the eyes were what gave everyone away, no matter _how_ good. ' _But he's Kira. I know he's Kira, so why…?'_ There had been no end to L's confusion at first. It had been shocking to think that his enemy could have finally become good enough to fool him…

And it was that thought - that fear of being fooled. It was what truly shut him off; what made him push the other away so constantly.

_Light-kun is my first ever friend._

A lie. A necessary lie to test the integrity of his opponent.

But as soon as Light had agreed so … _earnestly_ to work on the case, and as they were bound together… as soon as Kira had seemingly left, it was as if that lie had been _believed_ by him.

L could see it in every hidden glance.

Every genuine smile.

Every patient nod, every enthusiastic promise.

Every hesitated question. Every touch, every look of determination.

Every _never mind, Ryuuzaki, it's not important to the case._

Light Yagami, or at least one side of him, had _believed_ L's lie. He had wanted to be friends, and L had very carefully denied this request –

Because at least one side of _him_ wanted it too.

And L had denied it all for that fear. All for that base paranoia of being betrayed. And only to find out that all that time, Light had been telling the truth every time he said he wasn't Kira. He meant it every single time, and L had never cared to listen. But how could he have reasonably known? Suspecting someone, never fully trusting someone; keeping all possibilities open at once was what L was supposed to do.

It had been far too late to realise that he had killed Light himself. To realise he'd already failed, that he'd signed his own death sentence. He could've monitored him in the helicopter, he could've observed him every inch of the way.

But L gave up.

And it was why he chose to delegate the case to his successors.

_But even if I hadn't chosen Kira, even if I'd decided to trust Light, what difference would it have made? He disposed of me all the same. There were tears in his eyes, I remember, and he screamed – at first. And I have no way of knowing if any of it at all was true._

**_'It'll be lonely, won't it?'_ **

_I have no way of knowing what was going through his head when I said goodbye. Or even if we'd had just a little more time._

L opened his eyes.

_…More time._

That was exactly what he'd just been given. But he just couldn't shake the feeling that something was horribly off. That this wouldn't just happen without something behind it. Was there any point in reliving this again? Was any of it real?

L inhaled sharply as he stepped closer to the edge of the building's roof. The rain could be seen in thin streaks caught in the lights from below as they fell. He felt his chest clench, his breathing begin to quicken as he stared down, unable to see the ground.

His head was beginning to spin with vertigo, but he didn't stop. He wouldn't stop. _I died the first time. And now, I'm back. Logically, I could suspect that if I were to again, then…_

_But I have no way of finding out. Unless I was willing to find out… like this._

Now standing at the very edge, L made no effort to stop his vision from pulling out of focus; the lights below now a blurred sea of smudges. But he could hear the rain now, hear it right by his ears as it picked up, drumming against the hard surface of the ground. His hair was beginning to stick to his scalp. The feeling of the cold drops running down his skin was revitalizing – with each second that passed, it was like he was feeling more and more alive.

_..u...ak…_

Hmm? A sound?

_..Ryu…ak…_

A voice swallowed up by the rain.

L's skin began to prickle in anticipation -

**_Ryuuzaki…!_ **

…Ah. It must be because he was standing here in the rain. Of course he'd remember that at a time like this.

L knew what was coming next. The entire scene was mapped out completely in his head to the last detail; there was no way he could ever forget. _Yes; now, Light-kun will say –_

"Why are you standing over there like that?"

Hmm. That wasn't how it went.

Wait, _what?_

L turned around to see the familiar figure through the shimmering rain at the other side of the roof. It was Light, calling out and now waving. Panting, like he'd been hurrying. He ran out into the rain without any hesitation and headed over, despite the downpour, calling his alias again.

"What are you doing out here?" Light shouted. "It's raining!"

L stood there, stunned, both surprised and perplexed by the determination, the… genuine _concern_ burning in his eyes. He was… L blinked – he was still in his _pyjamas,_ bare feet and all, quickly becoming soaked in the rain. All he could manage to say was the first thing that popped into his head. "You called Watari."

Light threw his arms out. "You _chained me_ to the bed!"

"Yes…?"

Exasperated, Light gripped at his head and pinched the bridge of his nose, now shivering slightly in the cold, undoubtedly regretting his rash decision to run out into the rain. "That's not the _point_ ," he snapped. "Ryuuzaki, what the hell is _wrong_ with you today? First you took the cuffs off and now this!"

Normally, L would be making some snarky comment about being unable to trust Light now that he was out of said cuffs, but he knew he could trust him. He _knew_ it now, and he didn't know what exactly to do about it.

"Don't tell me this is all part of some new test to try and figure out if I'm Kira."

"I already know."

Light blinked. "What…?"

"You're Kira," L murmured.

Light sighed deeply. He was used to hearing this, of course. "Just get back inside. It's pouring, and I'd rather not –"

"No."

"What are you trying to accomplish?!"

Even if it wasn't Kira in front of him at this moment… Regardless, it was the person who had the potential to still be Kira. And L found himself curious. He found himself curious how the other might answer differently in a situation like this…

"If you want, you could ignore me," L echoed, "because nothing I say makes any sense anyway."

Light said nothing. His irritation was gone, and he was standing there, seemingly unable to think of a response.

"But…" L continued, sharpening his gaze, "I could always say the same about you."

Light stood his ground and his fists clenched slightly, rain dripping from the tips of his hair.

"Since the day you were born, has there ever been a time that you have told the truth?"

Light's eyes were the closest to Kira's L had seen since his confinement. For a moment, they narrowed; he pressed his lips together. There was no way he couldn't acknowledge his lies, even now.

But his response was not the same as before.

"Yes," was his reply, and it was full of that inexplicable _warmth_ that L could never understand, "I told the truth when I said I was looking forward to working with you, and when I said I wanted to catch Kira with you, and when I promised we would meet the same fate –" Light's eyes widened in sudden realization and he scowled bitterly. "…But obviously, you thought… you thought I was… I was…" It was hard for L not to recognise when his suspect (not suspect anymore, _culprit_ ) was seconds away from trying to punch him in the face.

But amazingly, he kept himself controlled this time, giving L a nasty look as he continued, " _Lying._ You thought I was lying, didn't you? You said I was your friend. So was _that_ a lie after all?" Light took a step closer, closing L in on the spot. "Why don't I ask _you_ if _you've_ ever told the truth, even once, in _your_ entire life? That's a _much_ more interesting question."

L stared.

" _Answer_ me, Ryuuzaki," Light spat. When he still got no answer, his patience snapped and he grabbed L by the front of his shirt, forcing him closer.

L calmly tilted his head. "Have I ever told the truth to you…? If you suspect me of being a liar, can you trust any answer I give, Light-kun?"

And this time, Light _did_ punch him in the face.

Staggering back, L cried out, only to be caught before he could regain his own balance, grabbed by the shoulders and held in place. Light yelled down at him, droplets of rain flying around as he shook L's body violently. "If you can't trust me even a little, how are we supposed to work together? I respected you!"

Wordlessly, L shifted his legs and swept Light's ankles out from under him.

Light was knocked down, but he didn't release his hold like expected and dragged L down with him – and L lost his balance and fell wildly, everything going by in a blur as –

" _No!_ "

The blur cleared. L stopped breathing as he glanced aside and caught sight of the endless sea of lights far below him, felt the cool chill of the air around him; the lack of surface underneath his feet.

L quickly looked anywhere else other than the death he would apparently fall to, and found Light's frantic face above his own. Light's arms holding him securely, the warmth of his body numbed by the cold of the rain.

And Light pulled him back up and onto solid ground again, breathing rapidly. L almost didn't hear him speak through the pounding of the rain.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking, I shouldn't have..." He swallowed. "If… if you'd died then, then I…"

Light was refusing to look his way, arms wrapped around himself as he shivered, slumped down into a sitting position, whether from the cold or anything otherwise.

"It… would have been all my fault," he murmured, and L wanted to make him shut up because it was all _his own_ fault, he had to respond, he had to strike back without even thinking about either of their safety; he could have messed this all up for himself, he could have completely ruined his second chance to be with Light like this –

And L realized he had finally come to a decision.

"It would've been all my fault," Light repeated, voice shaky, "without even _being_ Ki –"

L dropped to Light's level, letting the concrete scrape against his knees, and pulled his freezing, shivering body into a clumsy embrace. He felt Light jump in response, he felt his confusion, but L only hugged him closer, even closer, deepening the faint pocket of heat between them from where they were pressed together.

"Light-kun," L murmured to him, some part of himself still wondering what the hell he was doing, but the rest somehow not giving even the slightest pretense of a shit. "I'll tell the truth to you now, if you want to hear it."

"Ryuu… Ryuuzaki? What are you –"

L had decided. No matter what, one thing was certain now – whether or not this was a second chance of winning.

"…I'm sorry."

Light was only even more confused as L pulled away and got up, reaching a hand out to him. "…Why?"

L wasn't going to let himself die again. He wasn't going to let either of them die again. Not this time around.

At least, not if he could help it.

"Let's go back inside, Light-kun. We're soaked."

And that was final.

* * *

"Oh man. I really wasn't expecting him to almost _fall_ for Kira like that."

By now, there wasn't a single Shinigami who wasn't screaming bloody murder.

"Nu, please stop," Nix begged, " _Please._ "

"What?"

The method by which a Shinigami may be killed was known by few. In fact, they'd all been fast asleep when Rem had casually exposited it to Misa, much like they were every time either of them were on screen in general, so everyone missed out.

But there was one, very consistent way to cause a Shinigami near-mortal pain and anguish that many had come to know over the ages.

And that was puns.

"You're all being such wimps. Hmm, now, let's see…" Nu goggled at the portal to the Human world curiously. "I wonder. Is L just pretending to be his friend? I suppose the truth…"

"Nu, no…"

"…Will soon come…"

"Please, have mercy..."

"…To Light."

Someone in the back sobbed. More than likely Sidoh.

* * *

L sat staring out the rain-streaked window at the dark sky outside, towel still on head, watching and waiting without a word. Without moving. He still felt like he was in a dream, and found he wasn't inclined to believe otherwise until he had solid proof that tomorrow would indeed arrive, and that it would stay that way without any disruption.

He could feel Light's eyes on him from the bed nearby, smell his still-damp hair, and hear his unspoken questions.

L had been busy trying to predict the myriad of possibilities that this strange turn of events could lead to, but one thing he hadn't been expecting was for him to get up and sit in the chair beside him. Light did so in silence, without looking over, simply sitting down and looking out at the sky just the same.

The cold weight of the chain around L's wrist felt like a lifeline.


	4. III-i

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ...Late upd8... .n. ...
> 
> ... upl8. 
> 
> This was all originally just one chapter but I split it because dear god it ended up long.
> 
> My main hope is that it doesn't feel like it's gone off track, or that everyone's decisions don't make sense/OOCness... I have just been staring at this for so long that I can't even tell if it's dumb anymore .A. Also, I apologize if there are any weird mistakes, because it's just got to the point where I can barely read it and I just reeeeally need to post it.
> 
> In any case, enjoy part 3: I expect at least one person to hate my guts, and I welcome you :D

  **[ III . i ]**

 One, two, three, four. _One by one, each sugar cube fell into the cup with a_ plop _. Four more, and L started stirring them into a sugary sludge._

_It was late now. No one else was around. There wasn't anything left to do today. They were just sitting there listlessly, monitors off. Light would probably be wanting an early night._

_L was slumped in front of his computer, staring into space. He knew the dots were joining too neatly. He knew that Kira had to have planned for this day to come since the very beginning. They'd finally get to find out how Kira killed – but it was hard to be enthusiastic about it when he could practically see the numbers on his days. At least, that was how it felt._

_"Ryuuzaki…"_

_L heard Light's voice but wasn't quite snapped out of his trance and hummed in response, not paying attention. "Hmm?"_

_"…I don't know. That was good, wasn't it? I really think we'll catch Higuchi."_

_"Of course, Light-kun. Is something on your mind?"_

_"It's just… This is it. It's finally about to happen. I'm…"_

_L felt their chain tug from the other side and perked up, finally turning to look at the other._

_"Ryuuzaki, can you listen for a moment? I'm scared," Light said, but a smile soon appeared on his face, and he let go of the chain once he was happy he'd gotten L's attention. "…At least a little bit, anyway. But… I'm also glad that I might be able to clear my name now. I'm excited for this, Ryuuzaki. This is everything we've been working towards for so long now, and I just hope I'll finally have a chance at coming out on top for once. Aren't… Aren't you excited too?"_

_Excited for the distinct possibility of his own death? L couldn't even think of a decent lie right now. He ended up staring into his tea blankly, looking back at his reflection. It didn't look very excited either._

_Light's hands were on his shoulders and L was whirled around in his chair to face Light again head-on. "It's true that there's no way to know what will happen… I could be Kira. That's the biggest reason I'm scared, but I know I have to forget about it for now, because..." Light took the chain between them and gripped it. "Right now... We're going to get ready to catch another Kira, Ryuuzaki._ Together. _"_

_Somehow, where there had only been a terrible hollowness before, L felt nothing but warmth. The look in Light's eyes made him feel like he could just believe him and forget all of his worries, and now he was scared too; he was scared of how dangerous that was._

_But if he was going to die after all, did he really need to care right now?_

_Slowly L took hold of the chain too, his hand brushing against Light's warm one as he grasped it just as tight, unable to stop the faintest of smiles from appearing on his face. If it was possible, Light's eyes were even wider now - full of what could only be described as stars, and L felt he'd be worse than every monster he'd ever put away if he let his friend down right in this moment._

_"We'll catch Kira together, Light-kun. I promise."_

* * *

Against all odds, the dawn of October 25th broke in the sky.

L hadn't been there to watch it as it arrived; exactly when he'd fallen asleep he couldn't remember. He'd glanced across from him to see Light, also fast asleep, in his chair, head drooped against the armrest like he'd dropped off when least expecting it. Sleep had a funny way of doing that.

It'd been hard not to smile as he saw him. So hard, in fact, that he _had_ – it was a small, private thing; nobody was watching, not even his own logic and reasoning, and he had it all to himself. The view of Light sleeping wasn't anything new to L, but with his face and hair bathed so appropriately in the golden glow of the morning sky from the windows, it was enough to make him both forget and violently recall the monster that the boy really was.

…And to recall what he'd just let himself say (and do) to him the night before.

L recoiled from Light's sleeping form, shifting uncomfortably in his scratchy rain-dried clothing as everything came back to him: the chill of the downpour running over his skin, the rough concrete underneath his feet. The feeling of warmth from arms around him, and of his own arms around that same warmth.

 _I need to re-think this starting from the beginning,_ was the first thing L told himself to try and cool his head again, already desperate for some tea with twice the usual amount of sugar. _I'm... still here. I'm not dead. I'm here, and now._

_...And I wasn't in my right mind last night._

_I was... guilty. I was overwhelmed. I was terrified and overjoyed to see him again, and, I felt... the need to apologize. I know that much - but it was a mistake. I wasn't supposed to do something like that. I wasn't supposed to complicate anything. But I did, and it can't be changed. All I can ask myself now is... What_ can _I do? What_ will _I do? I have to think quickly._

L knew what he _wasn't_ supposed to do: he wasn't supposed to die again. He wasn't going to die again, because he didn't _have_ to die again. Neither of them had to die again. That was what he'd decided, and if anyone could figure out how to do it, it'd be him. (...Right?)

The skin on his wrist prickled as he felt the slightest movement in the chain. Light was awake, and he gave L a look but said nothing, heading over to the dresser to pick out some clothes before his usual early-morning shower. L glanced over at his back as the chain stretched between them.

_"If you can't trust me, how are we supposed to work together? I respected you!"_

_"I told the truth when I said I was looking forward to working with you, and when I said I wanted to catch Kira with you, and when I promised we would meet the same fate –"_

The memory of Light's heartfelt words from the night before sent a numb stab through his chest. If it was possible, then Light deserved better. Better than what he became. But if there was even a chance of that happening, it was slim, and if L wanted him to cooperate, he needed to make some changes. He already knew what his first approach got him and would get him again, and there was no point in doing the same thing and expecting different results. L was more than willing to start taking some risks.  
  
L needed... to gain Light's trust somehow. Let him in. Befriend him. It was what he'd already figured out Light had wanted, and if doing such a thing could possibly make him turn against the Kira side of himself even more...

The only problem with this being that he didn't exactly know how to go about it, to say the very least.

 _Just a 'Good morning' might be good enough for now,_ L told himself levelly, taking a deep breath through his nose before speaking up. Light turned around, eyes quickly narrowing in suspicion. He looked L over carefully, holding his gaze for a moment, expression neutral, but unable to hide a hint of confusion.

 _He's wary of me,_ L thought. _I can't tell exactly what he's feeling, but there is a thirteen percent chance it concerns my actions last night. He didn't understand me. Perhaps he thought I was playing a trick on him. I would be just as suspicious were I in his place._

Light then turned away again, heading for the bathroom door, and L got up to uncuff him so that he could get ready for the day. He kept his eyes fixed on the metal ring as he unlocked it in silence. As they went their separate ways, L felt like he had lost the other already. The feeling was like a nervous itch that wouldn't go away; being disconnected was too quick to remind him of their eventual separation after Light became Kira once again.

L sat alone after Watari arrived with the tea tray, wheeling it over next to him and giving him an odd look. Predictably, once he left, L's laptop soon lit up with the letter W in the center, displaying a question about last night's situation. He dismissed it as best he could with a vague answer and heard nothing more from his mentor. There wasn't anything he could tell him about this – no matter how well he tried to explain it. Everyone had limits to their suspension of disbelief, and no matter how overprepared they liked to think themselves, neither could've predicted needing a time-travel password. L was completely alone in this.

Alone, perhaps… save the Shinigami behind it all. He had no way of knowing if there were any in this room, watching him right now – in order to see one, you had to touch their Death Note. L quickly glanced over to the floor where the black feather had been before, but it was gone. He considered getting up to go find it, but just as he was about to move the sound of running water from the bathroom stopped and the door swung open.

He watched Light from behind as he changed after returning from his shower, thankfully unknown to him – though it wasn't like he'd be very surprised if he'd been aware of it. L still just needed to _see_ him, he still needed to verify the unburdened innocence that seemed to permeate every one of his movements; the lack of that former telltale grace and arrogance. After being so unshakably certain of Light's guilt at every waking moment of the day, it was quite the task to force his brain to think otherwise.

When L finally clipped the cuff back onto his partner's wrist he couldn't think of what to say. He stood there for a few moments in silence, staring into space.

"Aren't you going to get changed too?"

L blinked, eyes flicking to his cuff, then the chain, then Light. He unlocked himself before turning around and pulling off his shirt, seeing Light walk to the other side of the room out of the corner of his eye.

"I hope you were able to sleep well despite the disruption." L's voice was swallowed by the closet as he went over to get himself another identical set of clothes.

"I slept fine," Light politely replied, then paused. L could feel his gaze on his back. "Are you going to tell me what that was all about? You… were freaking out. And you separated us… You left me in here, _alone_ , without surveillance. What's gotten _into_ you, Ryuuzaki?"

L did a little jump as he pulled his jeans on, fastening them before cuffing himself again, then picking up his old clothes and placing them in the wash pile. "Light-kun knows that I'm occasionally stressed too. Being chained to another person twenty-four-seven isn't entirely healthy for anyone, even me – although it was my own idea."

"You were watching me in my sleep." L turned to see Light was now sitting with his legs crossed in one of the chairs by the window, coffee in hand.

"I must observe Light-kun at all times."

Light frowned, clearly unsatisfied. "…Of course I can't get a straight answer from you. If it's about Kira, don't I have a right to know?"

L began to head over, ignoring the tea tray. "Despite what occurred, I assure you I'm fine and there will be no disruptions to my work today. Everything will continue as –" L was cut off as he suddenly doubled over and sneezed loudly.

The two of them were left staring at each other in equal surprise for an awkward moment. For a moment it seemed like Light was going to say something, but the situation was, at least for now… strangely defused.

Neither said another word as they silently agreed to finally leave the room together, L silently cursing his decision to stay out in the rain.

* * *

The Shinigami World managed to appear even more dead than usual today, which was really quite the feat.

The regular crowd around the Human World portal had all dropped off like dead flies, fast asleep and snoring. Some lying down, some bundled up, some wrapped into their wings, but all bored out of their minds.

Ryuk oversaw the scene from his perch in a bare tree. He was admittedly almost bored enough to have a nap, too. Where was Kira, already? He was glad he hadn't been around to watch all this going on when Light gave up his note, or he'd have probably just put him out of his misery then and there.

The branch started moving, and Ryuk looked to his side to see the other Shinigami who'd fallen asleep while sitting next to him.

"Oi, Ryuk…" Gukku drawled, scratching his feathers and looking towards the portal with an annoyed groan. "Are they done with all that boring talking yet? I swear, it's like it's all that _happens_ in this story."

Ryuk shrugged. "Humans talk a lot. Anyway, If they stop talking right now, they won't figure out how they're gonna catch Higuchi. You could try paying even a little bit of attention, y'know."

"But I already slept through this part last time, and it's too much effort to sleep through it again. These guys are all really boring."

Ryuk pointed at the portal. "It's L doing all the talking, though. I thought you all liked him?"

Gukku tilted his head indifferently. "Oh, so he is. I dunno, I just saw all those other boring humans walk into the shot and I got my snooze on."

"You're telling me you're so lazy that you can't even sleep?".

"…Something like that, I think."

Somehow, Ryuk found he was too disappointed to even laugh, instead just managing a bitter chuckle. "This place really _is_ a shithole."

* * *

 _One, two, three, four._ One by one, each sugar cube fell into the cup with a _plop_. Four more, and L started stirring them into a sugary sludge.

_So far, so good. Everything's set up. I need to think more carefully about what I'll do once I get my hands on the Death Note again._

It was late now. No one else was around. There wasn't anything left to do today. They were just sitting there listlessly, monitors off. Light would want to get an early night soon.

_Maybe, if I…_

L tried to think more carefully on his future actions, but something was wrong. His head kept throbbing. His shirt was stuck to his chest with cool sweat, body flushed all over. Irritated, he tried drinking some tea, but it went down his throat like sandpaper and made him shudder in disgust.

L gave up on trying to think just for now and glanced over at Light, sitting in the chair across from him. He was staring blankly at his computer. The monitor had gone to sleep from being left too long, and he didn't even seem to notice L looking at him, completely lost in thought, until he spoke out of the blue.

"I could find more information from Yotsuba," Light said, still staring into space.

L swallowed some more tea to try and smooth out his throat a little, then shook his head. "We don't need that."

"…I could see if there's been more deaths. There could be something we've missed."

"There isn't."

Light frowned. He looked down, fingers tapping a rhythm against the handcuff on his wrist. After a few moments, he opened his mouth again. "I could…"

But L interrupted his train of thought, giving the chain a gentle tug to get his full attention. "Light-kun, we don't need to do anything now but wait."

Now looking over at L properly, Light was quiet for a longer time. His eyes soon darted aside. His fingers were shaking. "But I've done nothing."

L blinked at him. "Yes, you did. You contributed almost half of the plan, what are you talking about, Light-kun?"

Light's eyes darkened. "Are… Are you making fun of me? Is that a joke?"

"No...?"

"…I don't understand." Light swallowed, running a hand through his hair and pulling. "You just… said everything I thought about before I did. It felt like that. I'm not lying."

_Said… everything before you did?_

L's stomach twisted into a knot as he figured it out.

_...Higuchi. I didn't even realise it, but I just talked over everyone. I remembered everything Light said from the first time, and I just... repeated it. I wanted to get everything over and done with as quickly as possible. I didn't want to waste any time. I… I didn't think I would upset him._

"I -" L opened his mouth, but before he could get anything out – "A… _Achoo_!"

…He was _really_ regretting going out in the rain now.

Light shook his head, sighing, and turned away in his chair. "I just feel like I've done nothing to help catch Kira now… And it was my entire point for being here like this. I might have overreacted a little, but… It's just… This is it, right?. It's finally about to happen. I'm…"

"...Scared?" L offered. He saw Light's eyes widen, but continued before he could reply. "I know you are."

Light shook his head. "…A little. But… I'm also glad that I might be able to clear my name now –"

"The identities of the First and Second Kiras remain unconfirmed, Light-kun."

"…I know." Light turned to face L again wildly, the chain smacking against the table. "I _know!_ I know you'll still suspect me and Misa no matter what! I don't expect you'll ever give that up, just please, let me hope for now, okay?! You have no idea how being suspected for so long like this, or any of this feels for me!"

L blinked, taken aback. This wasn't good. Right now, he knew Light trusted him even less than he did before, and had been wary of him since that morning. If he was going to try and get him to cooperate, he needed to act quickly.

He rolled his chair over close and peered down from his perched position, pulling the chain to force Light over to him.

"Ryuuza-"

L leaned in far enough that their noses almost touched, keeping the chain tight within his grasp. "I can say with one-hundred percent certainty," he breathed, "that Light-kun is not Kira – without a single doubt in my mind."

Light gaped, speechless, breath caught in his throat. "Wh… What? What are you saying?"

"Believe me – or don't. Do what you want. But I would never let myself become the friend of Kira, Yagami Light-kun."

Though still dumbfounded, Light was breathing again now. "What… What do you mean?"

L leaned back a little to put some breathing room between them and saw Light slump into a more relaxed posture. "We'll catch Kira together, Light-kun. That's what I mean." He gave the chain a squeeze. "I promise."

"I want... You'd better explain this to me." Light pulled the chain away and backed off, moving away in his chair, but seemed more confused than anything. "You were only just saying how I'm Kira, how can you just turn around and –'"

"Make no mistake. I'm not saying that the fact you are my suspect has changed. But the fact is that at the present moment, you are not Kira. This is the conclusion I have come to, and this is why I can allow myself to trust you."

"R…Ryuuzaki…" Light swallowed. "I don't understand."

L chewed at his thumb. "Didn't you want me to stop suspecting you, Light?"

Did Light just shiver?

"Yes, I… but you can't seriously expect me to believe -"

L thought for a moment. He quickly typed a message up on his computer, sent it, and then got down, taking Light with him as he walked off to the elevator.

Almost falling over, Light held on to something, yanking the chain to try and stop L in his tracks. "Hey! Where -"

"We'll talk upstairs," L explained, and the other soon reluctantly followed.

Once safely in their room, free from surveillance, L immediately shut the door. He whirled around, cornered Light against it; their eyes level with each other as he stood at his full height. Light instantly flinched back as far as he could go, mouth dropping open but L cut him off before he could react. "I said sorry, Light-kun, because of what I'd realised. I spent all this time testing you for nothing; even if it was necessary to determine your innocence, I staged that execution."

Bewildered, Light looked at him with an unreadable expression, breaths coming rapidly. L leaned in closer and held up his wrist between them, not breaking eye contact even for a second. "If it's what it will take for you to trust me, I will remove this chain."

Light blinked in disbelief as he registered the words, but quickly shook his head. "…No. You don't need to go that far. Ryuuzaki, I told you to only remove it if you were certain I was innocent… While you know I'm not Kira right now, we don't know what will happen. Wait until then to see, and only then."

"…I see." L then backed away, Light slumping down into a more relaxed stance. He started making his way over to the desk in the corner of the room, where his laptop sat. "If the two of us are going to survive this case, then I need nothing less than your complete cooperation and faith."

Light said nothing, keeping a wary distance as L opened the laptop and waited for it to start up.

"I don't see what you're trying to do, Ryuu –" Light blinked in confusion as L turned around and showed the screen to him. He pointed to something that had been typed in the corner of a document.

Still baffled, Light stared at the strange combination of letters. "What? What's that?" he tried to read it out. "L… Law.."

"It's my name, Light."

Light paused.

"L Lawliet," L read out.

"…No." Light almost laughed, shaking his head. "You'd never just tell me your name like that. This is just some test, right?"

L shut the laptop and put it back on the desk. "Light, the only people in the world who know my name are Watari, myself and now you. I don't even have a birth certificate. I am chained to you and constantly monitoring your actions. I informed him beforehand that I intended to tell this to you. Therefore, if I die, the only possible suspect can be you." L then turned to him. "Misa-san is also currently innocent. Since she has lost her abilities as Kira, I have no need to fear that she can know my name just by seeing my face. And, lastly – I'm not going anywhere out of this building until we catch Higuchi."

There was nothing but silence between them for a long time after that. Light stared at the ground, then the wall, conflict running through his eyes. Eventually, he finally looked back over. "…But your name can't be L."

L blinked. "Coming from someone with a name like your own?"

Light sighed. "Fair enough."

"There are far more unfortunately-named people in this world, Light-kun. I should really consider myself lucky."

Light dropped down, sitting on the bed and holding his head in his hands. "Alright, enough of that. I just… you told me your _name!_ "

L tilted his head. "I explained my reasons."

"I know! Just…" Light shrugged. "Just like that…"

L stared at him. He was about to reply but Light's eyes suddenly widened and he jumped up off the bed, rushing over to him and grabbing him by the shoulders. "You _idiot!_ What if I really _was_ Kira and I somehow became him again? Then what would you do?!"

L remained limp in the other's grasp. "Convict you when it becomes obvious that it could only have been you."

Light's jaw dropped in disbelief and his hold tightened. "But you'd be _dead!_ "

"…Yes?" L replied flatly. "Light, it's a failsafe."

Light continued gawking wordlessly. L let himself free, taking a step back and casually putting his hands in his pockets. "What I want is for you to trust me, and I have done everything I can."

"…So, you weren't lying. It's really your name."

A small smirk found its way onto L's face. "I thought I already went over that. Now: I know it's obvious, but you'll need to continue calling me Ryuuzaki."

To his surprise, Light soon had a matching one. "Sure, L."

L narrowed his eyes, but Light only laughed, heading over to the cupboard to get changed for bed. L was about to uncuff him as usual, but before he could do so, the other stopped him, holding his hand in place.

"Thank you," Light said, eyes full of stars again.

* * *

L had a problem.

An uncomfortable feeling had taken hostage of his body since the previous night and refused to return it.

It was a lingering uncertainty that stuck to his mind like the gum under a table. He was _supposed_ to be proud of himself - he'd just been successful in making sure Light wasn't suspicious of him anymore. This was… it _was_ all just to gain his trust, right?

The problem was L wasn't so sure anymore.

He had no idea of how to be friends with someone, or what such a thing should feel like. He knew he _wanted_ to be friends with Light: being chained together in close proximity twenty-four hours a day for five months was bound to bring out what you really thought about another person, and while he could feign indifference on the outside, the only person he couldn't lie to and convince was – and would always be – his own self.

But of course, this wasn't about what _L_ wanted, it never was. It was about gaining Light as his ally; it was, in the end, still about defeating Kira, if indirectly. He couldn't let his own personal feelings get involved, or he would lose. He had to give Light only the appearance of what he wanted. If it meant L letting him a little closer to himself in a superficial sense, he didn't care. He would have to accept it.

This was where Light faltered originally when he became unwilling to use Misa for information, believing he would be lowering himself by taking advantage of her feelings – L had no such reservations. While this was new territory for him, he knew he wouldn't let himself fall. It was all for their own benefit in the end too: if L could save Light from himself, he would save his _own_ skin from Kira, and then Light could be happy like the Light L now knew deserved.

 _Amazing_ was an understatement: Light Yagami was one of a kind, and a mind like his could not be wasted. If things had been different, L knew he would never want to be without him. When they got along, he…

It was no exaggeration to say L didn't even feel like he wasn't working alone.

But these feelings, these doubts about the task at hand had to be ignored at all costs. He had to remain calm, he had to remain careful and cautious, or he would fail.

Unfortunately, at least for now, being neurotic, paranoid, and apprehensive beyond belief, this was easier said than done.

L had another, less important problem, too. His throat had suddenly become dry ever since he'd gone out in the rain, and now he was coughing, his body was overheating, and his nose was running.

It was a fact that his immune system, it was sad to say, had always been terrible. There wasn't much else it could be for someone who preferred to stay shut indoors alone for days on end with limited human contact. Even at the orphanage, L kept very much to himself and the few times when he did interact with the other children, he would always end up catching something or other.

He'd caught a cold, and as per Japanese custom, had started wearing a flu mask over his face in order to stop the spread of germs, seeing as he certainly didn't need Matsuda taking sick days. Although if anyone was most likely to catch it, it'd be Light, seeing as they were no less than three feet away from each other at all times – and L could do without him catching it either, since they both needed to be at their best.

Speaking of Light, L turned to see him place his tenth cup of tea that day on the desk with an unmistakable smirk.

He'd already heard all the jokes about replacing Watari by now. And speaking of Watari, he'd begun sneaking vitamins into L's food and swapping out his regular strawberry cake for carrot cake. Earlier today, he'd tried to get him to eat _soup,_ normal vegetable soup, and Light had watched him with such a shit-eating grin the entire time that L had to do it just to prove himself.

Which had only made the bastard even more amused.

L pulled his mask down with two of his fingers and took the teacup with another two, sipping. Thanks to the cold, he'd started drinking herbal tea instead, although with honey instead of sugar. "Thank you, Light-kun," he said with his scratchy voice, and narrowed his eyes as he caught the other trying to stop himself from snickering.

"It's your fault for going out in the rain, you know."

"That's a common misconception."

"You still caught a cold, Ryuuzaki."

Rolling his eyes, L pulled out his mask on its strings and let it smack back onto his face, intent on ignoring his third problem of unexpectedly sassy Light-kuns for the rest of the day.

Unfortunately, much like the first, it didn't seem there'd be much in the way of a solution.

* * *

Ryuk watched the scene in front of him, thoroughly intrigued.

By now, the other Shinigami were all busy sleeping again – there wasn't much point in watching two humans doing the exact same thing, after all.

Or, as it happened, just one human.

Light was the one awake this time. He'd put L to bed early like a fussy mother hen, but didn't seem tired at all himself yet. He was just sitting there in the chair the other usually used instead, looking at him every few seconds like some kind of creeper.

"Figuring out the best way to smother him in his sleep, Light-o?" Ryuk called to the portal with a cackle. If only he could just come down there and see the look on his face.

Ryuk observed the portal intently as Light moved closer to the bed. He was staring at L's sleeping form. His eyes were so different than he was used to. It was amazing, really – Ryuk already knew how much humans could change after using the Death Note, but this was really quite remarkable. Heh, if only Kira could see himself right now! He'd probably wanna throw up.

But right now, he was looking at L with confusion in his wide eyes, and Ryuk had to really lean in close to hear him mutter under his breath –

"L... Lawliet."

Light then frowned to himself. Whatever he was thinking, it was probably something unrelated to murder.

He sighed, sitting back down on the chair and wrapping a blanket around himself, closing his eyes. Aw. Nothing much happened. Unfortunately, life in the human world was plenty boring in and of itself, too.

At least Ryuk knew he'd see Kira soon enough.


	5. III-ii

 

**[ III . ii ]**

6:15 A.M.

Woken up by Light's showering. Told to get back to sleep and get some rest. Fully intended to defy well-meaning order, was still tired anyway, eventually betrayed by body.

7:30 A.M.

Awake again, this time by the smell of tea. Grimaced at herbal taste before remembering once more that he was sick. Glared at Light's amused face; throat too dry to work up a retort. Forced self to get up, drained the rest of the tea, throat still raw. Light has coffee for breakfast and they leave.

9:55 A.M.

Preparations continue. The task force begin to slowly accept constant use of their new personal antibacterial hand lotions after touching anything. L wishes he'd had it this way from the beginning, but he'd caught what he'd caught, and there was no going back to better inform his unassuming self in the past – unless getting in touch with the unknown Shinigami who'd landed him in this predicament was an option.

L glances at the clock and tells himself he still has plenty of time.

12:48 A.M.

Afternoon tea with petits fours and sponge cake. Mogi hoovers up three packets of instant noodles like nobody's business in the corner. Aside from a few guilty mouthfuls when his father gives him a concerned look, Light's lunch goes untouched as usual. L offers him one of the tiny triangle-shaped sandwiches he'd never planned on eating off the tiered rack, and he thinks for a moment. He refuses it, and they soon turn their separate ways again.

14:23 P.M.

L is buried in his thoughts, ruminating and reminiscing and planning and mapping. It's already two o'clock and he doesn't yet have a foolproof plan for the prevention of his own death. It's already almost been _three days_ and he doesn't yet have a foolproof plan for the prevention of his own death. The Shinigami. What will he do about the Shinigami Rem? He still doesn't know why it killed them. He still can't place its motive. It's the only piece. The only missing piece.

17:55 P.M.

It's nearly six o'clock and L doesn't know who'd set his personal barrier of time to the speed of a bullet train. Light places his fifteenth cup of coffee that day beside him and he takes it instantly. He's restless, unapproachable and unable to be reasoned with, and the task force has congregated politely to the areas of the room furthest from his invisible aura of stress. Light, of course, is unable to escape this area, and merely knows not to try and make conversation.

19:28 P.M.

Time is breathing down his neck. It's tomorrow. It's coming tomorrow, and today is almost gone, and it's impossible just to stop and _think_ in a motionless bubble until it's all sorted out. L's nerves are so on edge he feels ready to kick the next person who gets anywhere near him.

He drops a cup of coffee by accident and is silent as Watari cleans it up. Light stares at him with unspoken concern. L has to stop himself from telling him everything right there and then.

23:22 P.M.

The clock won't stop ticking but L has stopped any pretence of having fucks to give. He shoves chewy sweets into his mouth until they lose all flavour and his tongue can't taste anymore. He feels a sort of strange release, like a sucrose-overdose-induced zen.

And then almost falls face first into his keyboard.

23:25 P.M.

L stares at Light for the next ten minutes. He can only think about one thing.

23:35 P.M.

L is out of time and Light has had enough and finally drags him, stubbornly resisting, into the elevator.

_More time. More time. I was so stupid for thinking I had more time._

"…Ryuuzaki, what do you mean?"

L gawked in genuine surprise as he realised he'd said his thoughts out loud, eyes like a deer in the headlights. "…It's natural to be slightly nervous, isn't it?"

For a few moments there was silence between them, nothing but the hum of the elevator as it moved. L shut his eyes and switched his brain off, trying for once not to think.

"Do you think it'll work?"

L opened his eyes and looked over at Light. He was staring into the mirror surrounding the enclosed walls. "Hmm?"

There was a long pause before Light spoke up again. "Will we catch Kira...?"

"Hmm... I don't have any doubts." L tilted his head. "Are you nervous too?"

"I suppose it's natural, like you said."

L didn't continue the conversation.

The elevator reached its destination at last and they filed out through the doors in silence.

There was only one thing he could truly say with certainty about the day ahead of them, and it was that, for better or worse, everything would change.

* * *

"You know, you look terrible. You seriously need some proper rest this time."

Light had developed a tendency of starting the fuss routine as soon as they got upstairs and away from surveillance in their room.

"Thanks for sparing my feelings, Light-kun."

"I mean it. Worse than usual." Light was sitting on the bed while L stood, staring out the window at the drizzle that had picked up. "When was the last time you showered?"

L tried to remember the answer relative to the timeframe he was in. _Three days ago?_ _Four?_ Oh, God. He hadn't even realised he'd been forgetting to shower, and promptly shivered in disgust.

"I think you should have a bath," Light suggested. "It would probably help."

"I thought you wanted me to sleep."

L jumped like a startled cat as Light threw a towel and it hit him on the back. "Bath, then sleep. They go hand-in-hand, Ryuuzaki."

Since he didn't find himself in the mood for arguing that night, he decided to do as his surrogate mother was telling him.

Light was sitting in a different position, facing the wall when L came out of the bathroom half-clothed, attempting to dry his hair by shoving his head facefirst into a towel and rubbing it around randomly. When it felt dry enough he dropped the towel and pulled a fresh shirt on, then sat down on the opposite side of the bed and reached for the chain to put his cuff back on again.

L's attention was diverted when he heard Light snort and looked over at him, raising an eyebrow. "Your hair looks ridiculous," he laughed. "Like… an angry duck, or something."

It was sticking up in every direction thanks to the towel-drying. "If my hair is not dried this way, my deductive reasoning skills decrease by 20%."

Light rolled his eyes. "Of course. Hey, Ryuuzaki…"

L blinked, waiting.

But Light shook his head. "No. Don't worry. I'd better let you go to sleep now. And I'll need to, as well…"

"What was it, Light-kun?"

"Nothi…" Light cut himself off, taking in a deep breath. "Oh, what's the point? You're not going to fall for that."

Now staring, L abandoned the towel. Light's eyes hardened as he continued.

"We're going to be confronting Kira, Ryuuzaki. There's no knowing what could possibly happen, or what we'll find out. I don't know if you'll end up becoming more suspicious of me. But... I know I'm not Kira. I can't be Kira. I know there's no way I could suddenly just be Kira, my thoughts can't just..."

L moved a little closer, placing a hand on Light's shoulder, and he looked up at him, eyes widening. "I have no concerns about tomorrow, Light-kun. If there is one thing I can say with certainty, it is that everything will go as planned."

_It's only after that. Afterwards… that's what I'm worried for._

Light smiled faintly; it didn't reach his eyes. "Yeah. Because I can't be... Kira. Right? I... I'd never... just betray you so... suddenly."

A cold stab hit L in the chest and he let go, keeping as still as possible.

Light was looking down at his hands now, voice slightly strained as it came out. "…I still… I still can't believe that you decided to trust me. You told me your name. Are you seriously just going to trust me like that, Ryuuzaki? You're really comfortable with this? Even if you say that you completely believe that I'm not Kira right now…"

Silence. L's mind raced, but he couldn't think of what he could possibly say. Light licked his lips and looked up at him again.

"I just… I don't know if I can actually believe you. Ryuuzaki, give me a straight answer. There's no need for you to lie to me like this just to try and catch Kira."

L pressed his thumb to his mouth through his mask. "I told Light-kun that I'd be telling the truth from now on."

"You also said that I couldn't take anything you say at face value."

L leaned in close. "I told you that it's your own decision whether you choose to believe me, but this time you _have_ to if you want an answer. This is the truth: the fact that I can trust Light-kun right now is the only thing that I am completely and utterly sure of."

Light was still. And then, slowly, he began to shake.

"But you can't… you _can't_ trust me." His eyes were frantic. "That's the thing! Even I know that much! I'm sorry… I can't let you just… Ryuuzaki, I'm sorry…!"

 _What is he talking about?_ L blinked. "Light, I really –"

"No!" Light grabbed L's shoulders. " _Listen_ to me! I didn't want to tell you about this before, because I knew what you'd say. But even I'm worried that I could be Kira. There are memories I have that don't make sense…"

 _I always suspected there were things he'd never tell me about – but I never thought he'd actually…!_ "What memories?"

And Light told him how he met Naomi Misora, how he discussed aliases with her and found out her real name, how he remembered being on a train with Raye Penber, detail after detail he couldn't find any way to justify to himself. Piece after piece, suspicion after suspicion joined up and connected in L's mind as he listened, enthralled.

"No matter how I look at it, sometimes… I can't see it any other way than me being Kira. I even know that Kira's ideas match closely with my own." Frustrated, Light dug his fingers into his head and shut his eyes firmly. "But I'm _not_ Kira, I _know_ I'm not! And I wouldn't ever do any of those things how I am right now. I don't understand!"

 _There's no way he can know. It's not his fault._ L hid a frown under his flu mask. His hand twitched as he nearly reached it out; it hurt to see Light like this and he couldn't help feeling the urge to comfort him – but he made himself stop. Slowly, Light's eyes opened again and the look in them made his whole body seize with guilt.

"Ryuuzaki…" Light breathed, "if you're my friend like you say you are… I want you to tell me what you would do if you found out that I was Kira. Knowing all this now, can you honestly still say that you can trust me?" His voice dropped almost to a whisper then, and L could only just hear it as he asked, "Would you hate me?"

L swallowed.

Looking into Light's eyes as they were now... There was no question to his innocence and his conflicted confusion -- and there was no way L could let himself tell a lie in the face of them. 

"Even if you were Kira," and he said _if_ just because he knew Light needed to hear it that way, "I could never hate you, Light."

Light stared for a long time. The tips of his ears were red. He was unable to look at L properly for a while. L had never seen him act like this before, and was a little confused. The look in his eyes now was very strange.

"…But it scares me. The thought that… if I were Kira, I'd want you dead. I don't understand… I don't know how I could ever wish something like that on you."

Unwanted memories ran through L's mind at breakneck speed and he shivered. He felt like the other side of Light he knew was some kind of shadow, some kind of bad dream: even though he knew that for Kira, it was exactly the opposite.

"It was confusing to me, too, Light-kun. One moment, you seemed like you were the type who would kill without hesitation. Without feeling. It was an unnerving thing, being around you. That's why I found it so hard to trust you. The idea that at any time, you could be hiding that side of you underneath what I see in front of me now." L nibbled at his thumb through his mask. "But I know it's not true. I know that the Light-kun here right now isn't that person. But… both are equally exhilarating.'

Light paused for a while. "Exhilarating? I… I'm exciting?" He blinked. "Wait, _what…_?"

L's eyes drifted up as he lost himself deep in thought, recalling how he felt before all of this: before he was sent back, and when every step between them in their game was still unknown. "Being next to Kira is like being next to a ticking time bomb, isn't it? If a case isn't thrilling, I never take it. But never have I been so close. It was a very different feeling… and never have I felt more at danger than when working with you in this state now."

"…But you said you trust me, Ryuuzaki."

L blinked. _...What did I do?_ "I do. What I said is how I felt at the time. But now, I like to think that I know better."

Light sat up and snapped, "What do you _want_ from me? A confession? You really will never be satisfied unless _I'm_ Kira? Is that it? You even admitted it yourself to me before, didn't you -- that you _wanted_ me to be Kira. You…" Light glared at L with a bitterness he hadn't seen in a long time. "Is that still the only way you can think of me?"

L's mind raced to form a response, but it was hopeless with with those cold eyes staring him down again. _How did I suddenly mess this up again?! I thought I finally got him to trust me! What can I do if he won't listen to me anymore?_

Light shook his head and turned away, hiding his face in his hands. "I can't believe I... I actually…"

_I have to say something! I can't let this happen -- I can't let Light hate me. I can't mess this up, not again!_

" _No_ ," L blurted out.

Annoyed at the muffling from his mask, L yanked it away and exposed his face, returning, "Light-kun, _no_. That's _not_ what I'm saying. I know that you were Kira – but you're _not_. Right now, you're my friend, my _first_ ever friend, and I wish I could somehow just spend more time with you than this. I want to – listen, what I want more than anything is for you _not_ to be Kira! That's the _last_ thing I want, Light! I _want_ to be your friend, I _want_ to work with you, I _want_ you to be more than my _enemy!_ If you were to be Kira again, Light, I would… I'd…"

Left panting slightly in the aftermath of his outburst, it hit L all at once what just came out of his mouth. Somehow, he'd just poured out everything he had been thinking that he thought he would never say; everything that somewhere within himself had been tightly locked up. He... he meant every word of it.

Both of them were frozen in stunned silence, very quiet, very red, but Light even more so. The sparkle of realization, of something lit up his eyes, and he suddenly shuffled a little bit closer, throat quivering as he swallowed. "Ryuuzaki, you... you're serious?"

L blinked. He didn't understand what was happening. Why was Light looking at him so strangely again? Why was it so difficult to breathe?

"I… I didn't think you would ever… say something like that."

Burning with embarrassment, L looked away. "...Neither did I."

There was silence between them for a little while, L still not making eye contact, until Light finally spoke up.

"...Ryuuzaki."

L bristled as he felt their chain move, following it with his eyes as Light took it in his hand.

"...You promised too, right? As long as this connects us… our fates will be the same."

Slowly, finally, L looked back up at the other with a hesitant nod. Returning the look, Light smiled softly in response. "But it's not only that-- we're also connected by our minds and bodies, aren't we? By our souls, too… our _purpose._ And we will be… until this is over."

There was something shining in Light's eyes, and his face was almost dark red, as if he had a fever. Seeing him like this made L feel just as warm somehow; his heart was racing in his chest and he didn't understand why. He couldn't explain the sensation that flooded his body, this feeling of gratefulness and trust -- all thoughts of bitterness, all thoughts of hatred, all thoughts of Kira pushed away. Light's words had moved something inside him; they'd awakened an amazing strength, and L felt like he could do anything.

It was almost like that time before, but... what was different? Was it that L finally stopped lying; that he let himself say nothing but the truth for once? Was this... what it felt like to truly be friends with somebody, perhaps? L knew he should be scared; maybe somewhere he _was_ a little scared, but… this feeling wasn't entirely a bad one. It was unfamiliar, it was irrational… but no, it wasn't _harmful_ , at least.

L's pulse was picking up second after second, hammering nonstop. Light… he could trust Light… Light cared about him enough to feel the same… it was all too much. L was almost beginning to panic; no matter what, his heart wouldn't calm down. He'd never felt this way before with Light, not even when giving up his own name, not even when acting as a friend around him. Why now? What had changed?

Hands on his shoulders. Light's hands. What... was he doing?

"Ryuuzaki, as long as we're still in this together... I won't leave you."

His hands were warm. His breath was warm - L could just barely feel it against his face; he was so close.

"If I were to… then I would be Kira. I would have convinced you to stop suspecting me entirely."

L was seizing up. He felt like he was going to reach boiling point and explode; this was bad, this was bad, he couldn't let himself be seen like this; the last time he felt such a sense of imminent danger, of anticipation could only have been that dreaded memory of when –

_When... when I..._

"And then… our fates would not be the same anymore. Either one of us would die."

_...Died._

Light was moving closer now. Light's hands were still on his shoulders. Light was still looking at him. "But... we can't let that happen. Therefore… we have to stay like this. As close as possible. We have to think the same things. We have to share the same goals. We can be… unstoppable as a team. Not only friends. Ryuuzaki –… No, _L_..." Light said the name almost in a whisper, eyes clouded over as if entranced. "Maybe we have to be something… even _greater_ than that…"

_Light… What are you trying to say? We could…_

_But I… You already… If I let myself…_

_…That's right._

L came to a realization, and all of the warmth drained from his body at once.

_I would…_

_Die._

Light was still there. Light was still touching him. Light was still far too close. And Light was still Kira. That was right -- Light was always Kira. No matter what, he was _always_ Kira, even if he was saying things like this! And he was smiling, he was smiling so unashamedly at L because he knew he could fool him with it now, he _knew_ he could get away with it!

_No!_

_You'll still kill me even if you make me think I can really be your friend!_

_Stop touching me, let go of me, get out of here, get away from me, stop talking like this! We… we can't be… No, what the hell have I been saying?! How did I let myself trust you? How did I let you_ fool _me?! LET GO!_

**Everyone, the Shinigami–-**

Red was flashing in L's vision again, his body was seizing up, he was almost ready to scream, panicking; Light was gone, there was only the memory of Kira above him as he died. And that smile–

 _Kira's_ smile, then-

_'Yagami Light._

_I..I wasn't wrong!_

_But... I...'_

_You're..._

_You're not going to kill me._

_**NOT AGAIN!**_

And L lashed out and kicked Light in the chest, knocking him off the bed.

..

* * *

"Oh, snap!"

Roughly ten Shinigami dropped on their asses at once, the crowd all jeering as loud as they could.

"That was _cold!_ "

"Finally, some human violence! Awesome!"

One of the Shinigami pointed to Light. "Dude. If you looked _really_ close, I think you could pinpoint the exact moment his heart just completely _shattered."_

"Sweet! you saw it too?!"

"Unlucky... Oh man, if he turns back into Kira, he's gonna be PISSED. I think L just doomed everyone. Nice job."

Nu blubbered. "Even I can't think of anything for this. I'm just sad. I think I need to go kill someone ridiculously to cheer me up. I'll be by the skull pile if you need me, collecting the remains of my shattered soul." She left with a dramatic sob.

Meanwhile, Ryuk was laughing his ass off. He couldn't remember being quite this entertained before.

"This is why you guys need to start watching humans more often."

* * *

..

L gasped for air as he felt his throat constrict. He only regained his senses when the chain yanked him across the bed in return, sending a sharp shock of pain like a wake-up call to his body.

_What have I just done? Why did I…?_

L stared at the edge of the bed where Light was crumpled over on the floor and slowly getting to his feet, groaning in pain. He wasn't looking at him.

_I… Oh, fuck. No. No, no, no._

But nothing came out of L's mouth. He had no excuse.

"Y-you didn't have to fucking _kick_ me, Ryuuzaki!" Light snapped, body shaking with rage. He was holding himself back from responding in kind. His face was pale now, all the blood had drained from it. "If you wanted to get the point across you could've just –"

"Light," L blurted out, shaking his head. "please calm down."

Light whipped around. "Don't use my name so _familiarly._ "

L's throat dried up again at Light's furious eyes as he sat down on the opposite side of the bed, facing L with his back. His anger was practically roiling off him in waves. L somehow managed to make himself speak. "I..."

Light clamped a hand over his face, curling into himself slightly. He was subtly shaking, muscles all tensed.

"...It was a panic attack, Light-kun. I couldn't control myself. I didn't know what I was doing."

Light slumped a little. "I made you panic?"

L tugged the chain to get Light's attention and make him turn his way. "No. It wasn't you," he lied. "…It was only something you said that brought a horrible memory to mind. And then I just lashed out. I'm sorry." He decided to make up something. "It's happened to me before, and Watari is aware of it. He's quite used to it by now."

Light still seemed a little wary, but he wasn't angry anymore. Instead, he just covered up his face again and stifled a sigh.

"…Did I hurt you badly?"

"Yes. But I'll be fine. You know that."

"Actually, you might not know if I've bruised something… you could be bleeding internally, and –'"

"Ryuuzaki," Light insisted, "I'm fine." He offered L a tight smile.

"I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to do that."

"Just forget about it." Light paused. "…It's late now, isn't it? I'd like to have a shower before I go to bed." He held his wrist out for L to uncuff and L silently complied, watching him walk into the bathroom and then close the door.

L sat there on the bed and became buried in his thoughts.

* * *

Light came out of the shower sometime later, already dressed in his pyjamas and dried. He was surprised to see L bundled into the covers of the bed like a cocoon, deep in thought. The sight was odd, to say the least, since whenever L needed to sleep it was always in his chair.

It took a few seconds before L even noticed him, and he perked up from his blanket nest like a grasshopper.

"Light-kun," he murmured.

Light must have been calmed down a lot by the shower, as he seemed a little more relaxed and even offered a smile as L greeted him. But there was a dullness in his eyes as he went over to sit on the other side after putting away his towel.

"Why are you in bed, Ryuuzaki? You've never done that before." he raised an eyebrow. "And judging by how you're sitting in it, you've never used one before either."

L nibbled at his thumb. "You were just saying about how we have to be close… don't we? Therefore… why not sleep here tonight? There's enough room. And besides, when you roll around, sometimes you make the chain tug a lot because of the distance. I'm sure it's annoying for you too."

Light stared, baffled, and L blinked in confusion. "It's not like I'm a girl or anything, so there's no need to be uncomfortable.'

Light then swallowed, going a bit pink, and made an odd noise in his throat. "Well, uh… if you say so, I guess."

L didn't want Light to be uncomfortable, but he wasn't sure why he would be. Was it overstepping a professional boundary? But they were friends now, so… "...I'm suggesting this for the sake of convenience as well. Light-kun…? Is something the matter?'

"Uh… haha, no." he shook his head. "Don't worry."

"Are you still angry with me?"

"…No. It's not that. I believe you, you explained yourself." Light moved his legs and got under the covers. He didn't look at L.

L leaned forward on the balls of his feet and drew in close to the other's face, thumb against his mouth. "Is your Kira side conspiring to kill me again?'

Light tried to edge away. Odd, he usually just put up with L invading his personal space like this. "No! what was that whole conversation for?' he sighed. 'If you're allowed to be depressed sometimes then so am I, Ryuuzaki. Don't worry. It'll pass.'

L returned to his place. He decided he didn't like this. Didn't Light believe that it had been a mistake? He didn't want him to be upset. "Alright. I'll try and find a way to cheer Light-kun up in the meantime. How about that? Hmm… I'm not sure if I should recommend cake. After all –"

"—You lose your appetite when you're depressed."

Light still knew him well. "…Yes. Well, it used to cheer me up, in fact… having cake when I was upset. But then it stopped becoming a treat, because I ate it so often. Perhaps, the association with cake and happiness… of course it would lead to its reversal in time."

"It's not like you to ramble so much, Ryuuzaki," Light chuckled.

"Ah. You're smiling again."

Light quickly wiped away his smile and tried to look serious again. "No I'm not."

L grinned. "Yes you are."

"Nope."

"I always knew Kira was a liar."

"So are you, Ryuuzaki."

"Yes," L agreed, "But that's because I obviously have a great many guarded secrets that cannot be allowed to fall into the public knowledge."

"Like your lack of eyebrows?"

L tilted his head. "You want the answer to that one?"

"Yes, actually."

"Alright. It was an accident."

Light blinked. "What?"

"I had eyebrows, you know. Very recently. But I got some gum in one by accident. And, well.. if you have to shave off one, you have to shave off the rest too."

"What, really?"

"No. I just had a very odd compulsion. Light-kun is now cheered up. He should go to bed."

Light slumped down a little. "…Alright, then."

L was still watching him. He saw Light stare in confusion. "Ryuuzaki, are you going to sleep in that? Your normal clothes?"

"Hmm." L grinned mischievously. "Light-kun is suggesting I strip?"

Light almost choked and his eyes went wide for a moment, "N-Nobody is suggesting that but you."

L shrugged, hooking his cuff to the bedpost for a moment so he could pull his shirt off, jeans soon following, leaving himself in his underwear. He folded the clothing neatly (a leftover habit from his days in the orphanage) and placed it on the nearby chair, then reattached himself.  
  
"To be honest," he explained casually, back arching as he stretched out and yawned, "when I have to sleep I actually feel most comfortable completely naked, but I'm not sure even _I_ could outrun the law if your father managed to found out." L fell back into his usual hunch and then sat down. "And I'm sure Light-kun wouldn't exactly appreciate it."

Scratching at the base of his neck, he then turned to see Light was staring at him very intently. Odd; he wasn't even _wearing_ his calligraphy-print boxers today. (Those were for days when he _really_ needed to think.) But the second the other noticed L looking at him he quickly blinked and folded his arms in his lap, face strangely red again.

L frowned, worried. "Do you have a fever, Light-kun?"

Light quickly returned to life and looked away with a shrug. "Uh… n-no. I feel fine."

L tilted his head, nibbling at his thumb. "Mmm… well, I'll have a look at it in the morning. We can't have both of us being ill. If it's serious, Light-kun may need somebody to take care of him."

"Oh. You're right." Light blinked, and he stared into space like he'd had an epiphany. "…Now that I think about it, I was lying just now. I feel horrible, actually."

L frowned again. "Hmm. Lying doesn't help my suspicion of you any, Light-kun..." he paused. "I should stop saying that. I've chosen to focus now on the fact that I know you aren't currently Kira. I'm sorry." Laying down, he curled into a foetal position on his side, thumb at his mouth. "Well now, good night."

The bedsheets on the other side shifted around Light's body.

"…Good… night. Hmm… Can I, uh... Ryuuzaki, do you mind if I quickly use the bathroom?"

* * *

"Well, well!" Midora giggled into the portal. " _There's_ something I don't see when Misa-Misa sits on your lap! Eh-heh- _heh!_ "

Nix grunted in disgust. "...Midora, why are you watching that?"

"Hey, don't tell me _you_ wouldn't hit that like a damn comet."

"…Dude," Ryuk gagged, "pretty sure that's illegal. In _both_ our worlds."

Midora shrugged and sloshed over her lips with her oversized tongue, lowering her eyes and growling thickly, "Well then, call me a lawbreaker."

"… _Eeeew,_ " someone whined.

"But in a way, to a Shinigami like us, age really _is…_ just a number," snickered Nu. "It floats in front of faces."

"Ugh," Ryuk groaned, "don't even _go_ there. Also, oh, hey Nu. You're back."

"Yeah? Gonna lecture me about the rules, Mr. Extra Death Note swindler?" Midora returned. "Tell Sidoh that to his face over here!"

Sidoh made a disagreeable sound somewhere between a grumble and a whimper.

Ryuk shrugged at him. "Hey, no hard feelings."

"Alright, break it up, break it up!" Gukku called out. "I'm try'na watch."

Ximera gawked. "What're you talking about? They're just sleeping now. Thankfully."

"That's not interesting?"

"Not really."

Ryuk didn't nearly have enough apples right now to deal with this right now. What had he gotten himself into?

 _Still,_ he thought, cackling, _I can't deny how hilarious this is. If I ever told Light he'd end up making googly eyes at his arch-enemy like some lovestruck schoolgirl his reaction would've been priceless!_

_But I've had enough of this already. After all, it'll be even more interesting…_

_To see what happens when he finally comes back._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NEWS AT 9: LIGHT YAGAMI REACHES RECORD-BREAKING LEVELS OF GAY.
> 
> New notes: This chapter has gone through a second edit as of 19/04/17! :0 A few things have been changed and added.  
> Also, wanted to add a small comment on Light's dialogue here. I basically tried to make him say the cheesiest shit I could possibly come up with, because he has plenty of cheesy shonen lines in the original Yotsuba arc (of course with the oft-quoted promise line being the main one)  
> And yep, he was trying to kiss L but got denied... I'm so sorry Light ;u;


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